S. Kamsner et Mp. Mccabe, The relationship between adult psychological adjustment and childhood sexual abuse, childhood physical abuse, and family-of-origin characteristics, J INTERP V, 15(12), 2000, pp. 1243-1261
A history of childhood sexual abuse (CSA) has been shown to be an important
contributor to poor psychosocial adjustment in adult life. However, the lo
ng-term impact of childhood physical abuse (CPA) has been neglected, and re
search has often failed to consider moderating factors such as a negative f
amily environment. This article investigates the relationships among adult
psychological adjustment and self-esteem, family-of-origin environment vari
ables, and a history of CSA or CPA. A self-report questionnaire was adminis
tered to a general community sample and a tertiary student sample. Findings
indicated that family-of-origin variables did not predict psychological ad
justment. However the community group exhibited poorer psychological adjust
ment than the student group. For the community group, family cohesion and C
SA were the best predictors of adult adjustment and self-esteem. For the st
udent group, only CPA significantly contributed to the prediction of adult
psychological adjustment. Statistical and conceptual limitations, as well a
s directions for future research, are discussed.